This invention relates to an insulation displacement contact.
Australian Patent specification 90449/98 describes an electrical power outlet having insulation displacement contacts for connecting insulated wire thereto. More particularly, there is described an insulation displacement contact formed from a conductive element having an aperture therein, opposed portions of the edge of the aperture defining opposed contact portions which extend inwardly towards each other and which have inner opposed contact edges which define a channel therebetween, whereby a wire having a conductor surrounded by insulation may be introduced into the channel and pressed into the channel to cut the insulation of the wire and make electrical contact between the contact edges and the conductor.
In the arrangement as last-described, a carrier may be provided, slidable with respect to the conductive element and having an opening into which the wire may be introduced such that the wire extends into the opening and also through the aperture at a portion of the aperture spaced from the channel, the wire then being movable into the channel to make said contact by sliding the carrier to carry the wire into the channel.
In an arrangement as described in patent specification 90449/98, it has been found that there is some tendency for the conductive element to buckle when a wire is terminated, unless the conductive element is made from relatively heavy material.
In one aspect, the invention provides an insulation displacement contact formed from a conductive element having an aperture therein, opposed portions of the edge of the aperture defining opposed contact portions which extend inwardly towards each other and which have inner opposed contact edges which define a channel therebetween, whereby a wire having a conductor surrounded by insulation may be introduced into the channel and pressed into the channel to cut the insulation of the wire and make electrical contact between the contact edges and the conductor; the insulation displacement contact having, at opposed side edges of the conductive element, respective flanges which are generally parallel to the direction of extent of said channel and which are oppositely directed with respect to each other. Particularly, the conductive element may define a central portion which is elongate in the direction of extent of said channel, and said flanges may extend in said direction and out of the plane of the central portion to respective opposite sides of that plane.
The contact portions may extend from substantially fixed ends at an angle to the direction of extent of the channel so as to converge towards each other, and have free end parts which extend generally parallel to each other and which define said contact edges. Free end edges of said free end parts may extend transversely with respect to the direction of extent of said channel and diverge outwardly with respect to each other in the direction away from said substantially fixed ends to form a lead-in structure for facilitating entry of the wire into the channel. The free end edges may extend angularly with respect to said plane of the central portion and be oppositely directed with respect to that plane so as to tend to introduce displacement of the contact portions in opposite rotational directions out of said plane, when a wire is brought into contact with the free end edges for introduction into said channel.